1. Field
The subject disclosure relates to methods and systems for producing animated fabric, and more particularly to improved methods and systems for animated fabric with a plurality of different patterns depending the viewing angle.
2. Background of the Related Art
The Multi-Image Graphical Weave is born out of earlier development of a weave structure that created a fabric having two images on its front surface that transition between and replace one another visually depending on the viewing angle. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,560,401 entitled “Animated Multi-Image Fabric and Method of Producing the Same” and issued to Miglus on Oct. 1, 1996 ('401 Patent). The existing transitioning image weave technology of the '401 Patent provides for only two images to change from one graphic frame to the other, as the viewers angle changes. This limits the visual, aesthetic and compositional possibilities of the transition between images to frame A or B.
Additional examples are some of the textile technologies that have transitioning image surfaces include a knitting technique called “shadow knitting” or “illusion knitting”, in which an image is seen from one viewing direction and disappears from the opposite direction. This technique has been employed commercially (upholstery fabric designed by Jhane Barnes for Knoll Textiles in the late 80's or early 90's), as well as in hand-craft. Of a similar nature there is reportedly an example of woven fabric dating back to the 1800's or early 1900's in which an image appears from one direction and is replaced by no image in the other viewing direction, in the historical archives at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City. In 2014, the Italian carpet company Golran, S.r.l. introduced the Lake Collection of sculpted pile rugs with 2-way optical effects, and in 2005 the Mohawk Industries, Lees Carpets introduced a tufted carpet with transitioning patterns between opposite viewing directions. Other related non-woven references include the optical constructs of lenticular graphic items and holograms, some pre-cinemagraphic toys that had three planes displaying images, and the optically kinetic art works of Yaacov Agam, who's techniques have been adapted to commercial billboard systems. Another example is Patent Cooperation Treaty Pub. No. WO 1994015492 A1, which published on Jul. 21, 1994 (Patent Cooperation Treaty Serial No. PCT/AU1994/000020). It discloses a substrate with embroidery or secondary stitching thereon.